So, a while back, I shared about some really fun, diy Easter eggs using vintage hankies, washi tape and stickers. Because they were so easy to make, I thought I’d do another post on creating more beautiful eggs. This time, I used a variety of unconventional items to create these eggs. Read on to find out how to make them!

Faux Lemon Eggs

What you’ll need:

yellow acrylic paint

wooden-handled sponge brush

green felt

hot glue gun

gold paint pen (I used the DecoArt pen and LOVED it!)

Easter eggs (I used the white eggs with the matte finish.)

First, paint the eggs yellow. Set aside to dry, and heat your hot glue gun. (Here’s a tip for a drying station….Take an empty paper-towel roll and cut about 1-2″ strips. The eggs can sit in each round strip to air dry.) While they’re drying, cut small “leaves” with your scissors. Place a tiny dab of hot glue on the top of the egg, and immediately place one of the leaves on top. Repeat this step to add another leaf on top. Once the yellow paint is completely dry, use a black sharpie and draw the eyes and mouth onto the egg. You’re done!

Baby’s Breath Eggs

What you’ll need:

paper mache eggs

white paint pen

baby’s breath

hot glue gun

Here’s how to do it: First, heat your hot glue gun. Once your glue gun is hot enough, carefully cut about 1″ strips of baby’s breath off the stems and hot glue the tips onto the top of the paper mache eggs. Last, take your white paint pen and carefully draw the eyes and mouth onto the egg. That’s it!

Watercolor Eggs

Here’s what you’ll need:

watercolor paint

watercolor brush

small cup or bowl of water

white eggs (with a matte finish)

paper towel

Here’s how to make them: First, lightly dampen your paint brush and watercolors. Next, paint one color onto one section of your egg. Clean that color off your brush by dipping it in the cup of water. Press the brush onto your paper towel to soak up the excess water. Next, paint another color onto another section of the egg. As you paint, these colors will slightly bleed into each other, but that’s a-okay. And that’s the beauty of watercolors! You’ll definitely want to let them air-dry. (For an easy idea on air-drying eggs, check out the “diy lemon eggs” above.) 😉 After you’ve painted your eggs, before they’re dry, they’ll look like a mess. But trust me….once they’re completely dry, these painted eggs will look absolutely beautiful!

Faux Concrete Eggs

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 wooden-handled sponge brushes

black chalk paint

white chalk paint (I used the DecoArt Americana brand for both of these chalk paints, and I LOVE them!)

dry paper towel

plastic eggs (matte finish)

I’ve played with the faux concrete method recently, such as in these diy concrete pots, and I’ve really loved how great they look! And this method is super easy to do!

Here’s what to do: First, using your sponge brush, paint a thin layer of black paint onto your egg, one section at a time. Immediately after, grab your paper towel and briskly wipe off some of your black paint. Continue to repeat this process until you’ve gone around the entire egg. Next, brush a thin layer of white paint onto your egg, one section at a time and over the entire egg. Immediately after, briskly wipe off sections of the white paint. That’s it! You’ll have these beautiful, faux concrete eggs in no time!

DIY, Floral Napkin Eggs

Here’s what you’ll need:

pretty, floral napkins

DecoArt mod podge in the matte finish

wooden-handled sponge brush

scissors

plastic eggs (in the matte finish)

paper plate

These eggs are beautiful and so easy to make! First, start cutting out the floral pattern out of your favorite napkins. Next, pour about a quarter-sized amount of mod podge onto a paper plate. Using your sponge brush, paint some mod podge onto your egg. Immediately after, place your floral piece onto your mod-podged egg. Repeat this process until you’ve covered the egg to your liking. Once you’ve finished decorating the egg with florals, brush a thin layer of mod podge around the egg to seal it. That’s it! See how easy that was?!

Gold-Painted, Metallic Eggs

Here’s what you’ll need:

DecoArt Glass Paint Marker

plastic eggs (matte finish)

Y’all! I absolutely LOVE this gold paint pen!! It leaves a shiny finish and goes on so easily! Another thing…you can also use this pen if you’d like to permanently write onto a mug, for example. I have heard that a lot of those Pinterest projects don’t work using a sharpie, but I’ve also heard that this pen is the answer! Okay…onto the DIY eggs. 😉 I painted some geometric shapes on one egg, a cross on another, and “hello” on the other. You’ll definitely want to follow the directions on the pen’s packaging before you get started, but I was very pleased with how they turned out!

So there you have it. Six different DIY Easter eggs for you to make with family and/or friends. Which one’s your favorite? I’d love to hear about it! Comment below, or stop by and say hey on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, HomeTalk and Facebook. It always makes my day to hear from my sweet readers! Have a wonderful day!

Recently, I’ve done a few live videos with HomeTalk, so I thought I’d go ahead and compile them into one big post and make a one-stop shop for them….My sweet hubby has been the amazing videographer, and I’m so thankful he’s been able to join me for every live on HomeTalk! I feel like we make a pretty awesome team. 😉

By the way, if you’ve never heard of HomeTalk.com, you’ve got to check them out! They’re a HUGE online community that discusses all things home and garden.

My very first live video with HT was this past October of 2016. 😉 To date, I’ve done live videos for every season except summer! So you know what that means….I need to schedule a summer-styled, live-video “date” with HT soon, right?! 😉 I definitely think so!

In this video, I shared with you all about styling a gorgeous Christmas mantel. I also used a very helpful item for my DIY projects and shared all about it as I showed my viewers how to make glitter houses. 😉 You can also read my blog post for these sparkly accessories!

Oh, this video was a blast! I showed you how to make a variety of garlands on a shoestring budget! You’ll be amazed (or at least I hope you will be!) at how inexpensive they are to make, and yet these beautiful pieces look like they came straight from a high-end home decor store! Plus, when prepping for this video, I wanted to include both neutral AND colorful styles. You can read all about these garlands by clicking here.

Below is the “before” picture…I found these pots at various thrift stores and the dollar store, and then some were found brand new at Home Depot. Of course, I grabbed a few of these pots from my back porch as well. You definitely can use the ones you already have! I also wrote a detailed blog post on this topic as well….You can read it here — “Easy Whitewashed, Stenciled and Faux-Concrete DIY Pots.”

In this video, I shared so, so, SO many DIY projects for creating a Spring tablescape and mantel. I’m all about pinching pennies and making the decor myself, as long as it looks beautiful! I shared with my viewers how to make these beautiful chargers, the vibrant-green moss runner, the ruffled runner, and lots of other beautiful decor. You can also read all about our Spring home by clicking on these 2 links: our DIY, Natural Spring Tablescape and our Natural and Rustic DIY Spring Mantel.

In this video, I shared with you all sorts of DIY Easter eggs, such as eggs with stickers, faux-concrete eggs, watercolor eggs, baby’s breath eggs, etc. I also did a blog post for this video, and you can read all about that by clicking on this title — DIY Easter Eggs.

Well, that’s it at the moment. Were you able to watch any of these lives? If so, which one is your favorite? I’d love to hear all about it! Comment below, or stop by and say hey on Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook. It always makes my day to hear from my sweet readers!

Also, I want to thank you all for your kindness and sweet encouragement as I share with y’all about our home. I love getting to do this whole blog thing….It’s been a huge blessing, and y’all are definitely a big part of that! So I thank you from the bottom of my heart!

Update: Since publishing this post a couple of months ago, I’ve done two more lives with my hubby, and here are the links if you’d like to watch them!

Hey friends! Thanks for stopping by today! Before we begin, I wanted to remind you to follow along with me on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, HomeTalk and Facebook, so you don’t miss another post! Also, if you missed my post on our Spring tablescape, click here for lots of diy tutorials and thrifty inspiration!

Today, I’d like to share with you how I styled our mantel for Spring! It was so much fun to gather my accessories and decorate our mantel for this lovely season! Also, I really am so happy to tell you that this mantel of ours doesn’t have anything that costs an arm and a leg! In fact, the new items that you’ll see were all half off at my local crafts store! Score! If you’d like to see how I styled this mantel in a live video, click this link here. (You’ll also learn how to style a beautiful and DIY, Spring tablescape!)

I hope you enjoyed our “home tour” for Spring…more specifically, our natural and rustic Spring mantel! Again, if you missed the live video where I showed you how I styled our mantel and table for Spring, click here! How are you planning to decorate for Spring? Will you be making anything as part of your decor? I’d LOVE to hear about it! Comment below, or stop by Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram…It always makes my day to hear from my sweet readers!

Hey friends! Thanks for stopping by today! Before we begin, I wanted to remind you to follow along with me on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, HomeTalk and Facebook, so you don’t miss another post! Also, if you missed our Spring mantel, click here for lots of diy tips and farmhouse goodness!

I love this time of year…the cool breeze that gently moves through our open doors/windows, the sound of nature that seems to sing a little louder and the days that go a little longer. We can leave the doors open without worrying that we’ll let out heat or a/c. New birth appears — in the colorful flowers, the fresh, green grass and the trees that are all blooming. This new birth also reminds me of Easter, where we celebrate the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior! Did I mention that I love Spring??!! 😉

And decorating our table for this beautiful season was so much fun. When I was trying to decide how I wanted to decorate our home this year, I knew I really wanted to have that natural, rustic feel with soft greenery, so I’m really excited to share with you how this tablescape turned out! I didn’t spend over $10 for any one item, and half of this decor is diy! I shopped my house for the other essentials. Actually, most of you probably already have these items in your own home as well! And if you missed our live video tutorial on how I styled our table and mantel for Spring, please click this link here to watch the replay. 😉

Let’s start with the first layer…the table runners. I had some thin, white fabric sitting around, so all I did to make this runner was tear a 2-foot strip of fabric lengthwise. Then, I hot-glued 4 layers of ruffles to this runner on either end. Very easy!

Now that my runners were complete, it was time to shop my house for the accessories. Again, I was going for that natural, rustic look, so when it came to gathering accessories, I kept my mind on what was a “natural” accessory: antlers, greenery, white beans (I’ll get to that later), flowers, birch, and nests. And then of course, you want to add a variety of textures: fabrics, wood, moss and metals.

What do you think about these faux-greenery chargers? They’re so easy to make, and I love how natural they look! Click here for that post. You’ll love making them, and they were only $5 each! Score!

Also, have you noticed those white, fabric napkins? Well, they’re actually feedsack dish towels, and they’re huge and soft! You can find a four-pack at Target or Walmart for under $5….Recently, I found a 10-pack at Walmart for under $8! You definitely need to have at least one set in your home! 😉 Also, the white plates are a thrift-store purchase that were 25 cents each.

When setting up your centerpiece, be sure to add a variation in height and texture. Also, don’t forget that you want to be able to see your family’s or guests’ faces, so don’t make your decor too tall, right? 😉

When shopping my house, I found an old, vintage box and turned it upside down to add a “stage” for my old, concrete pots. The birch wood slice is from my sweet mama, and the glass cloche is a staple that I got from PB Outlet. The variety of gold candleholders are from thrift stores, and I haven’t paid more than $1 for any of them! The faux, pink peony is from a local crafts’ store that I got half-off.

I love our gold flatware! You can dress them up or down, and they pair really well with our gold candleholders!

I love our dining table and cane-chairs set! I found these beauties at Goodwill a couple of years ago. Back then, they were a tired and outdated dining set, but with a little tlc, it’s gorgeous and adds the perfect farmhouse touch! Click here to see some before and after shots, as well as mistakes I made during this project. 😉

Thanks so much for stopping by! Again, if you’d like to see the replay on how I styled our table and mantel, please click this link here. 😉 I hope you found some inspiration for your Spring table! What did you like best? How are you planning to incorporate Spring into your home? I’d LOVE to hear about it! Comment below, or stop by Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram…It always makes my day to hear from my sweet readers!

Recently, my son did a school project in which he used a tri-fold poster board for his presentation. Because he only needed half of the board, the rest was discarded, and I knew exactly what to do with that remnant piece! Alas, the birth of this moss runner idea was born! 😉

First, cut your cardboard to the size you’d like it to be. Next, because the spray adhesive has some fumes, be sure to do this project outside. Or if you have a portable, pop-up tent (as seen in this blog post), then turn on some fans and do it inside. 😉

Now, all you have to do is spray your cardboard, small sections at a time. After each spray, immediately push down your moss, tearing the strands apart as you pull them out of the bag. 😉

Completely cover your board, so that no sides show.

Now you’re done! See?! That was soooo easy, wasn’t it?! I love projects like this!

If you’d like to see the rest of our tablescape all decked out for Spring, be sure to stop by tomorrow (March 9th). I’m planning to post TWO posts….one for our Spring tablescape, and one for our Spring mantel! Woot woot! And don’t forget to set your reminders to watch these exact tutorials tomorrow at 1:00 est on HomeTalk’s Facebook page! Can’t wait to say hey to you during the live video!

Also, I hope you were inspired to look for creative ways to decorate your home for Spring! What are your ideas? I’d LOVE to hear about them! Comment below, or stop by and say hey on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, HomeTalk and Facebook. It always makes my day to hear from my sweet readers!

Let’s get started! But I’m warning you…these steps are so quick and easy, you might totally miss these instructions all together. So pay attention! 😉

First, cut 2 1-foot strips of twine per plate (for tying).

With the natural fold of the greenery from the packaging, take your scissors and cut in the middle of the greenery. (It’s very easy to cut!)

Now, form a circle with the greenery by bringing its ends together. Be sure to overlap the ends, so there’s no bare spot when the plate rests on top.

Next, tie some twine around the ends of the greenery to hold it in place. You might need to tie each strip in a couple of spots, so that it doesn’t loosen and come out of a “circle.”

Okay! That’s it! Now here’s the fun part….You get to rest your beautiful plate on top and just look at the simple beauty of your diy decor! 😉

To see the rest of our tablescape all decorated for Spring, I did a Facebook Live and showed the viewers how to make these chargers and a few other fun decor items! (Click here for the link.) AND if you’d like to see how I made this fun, mossy table runner, please click here. 😉

Also, I hope you’ve been inspired to make some Spring decor for your own home! What are you wanting to do to make your table beautiful for this gorgeous season? 😉 I’d love to hear all about it! Comment below, or stop by Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram…It makes my day to hear from my sweet readers!

Giveaway is now closed. A huge and hearty thanks to all who entered! Click this link to find out the winner! Please know that I appreciate each and everyone of you…for your kind words and loving support. It’s blessed my heart in more ways than you’ll ever know!! xoxo

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Hello friends, and thanks for stopping by today! Before I begin, I wanted to remind you to follow along with me on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, HomeTalk and Facebook, so that you don’t miss another post! 😉

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I have some very exciting news! Currently, our home is in one of my all-time favorite magazines…American Farmhouse Style!! I’m thrilled to share with you that AFS chose to put our home on the FRONT COVER, and they gave us a 12-page spread! So crazy, and it’s on newsstands now!

I’m seriously honored and humbled that one of my favorite magazines shared our home! So, to the editors of AFS, if you’re reading this post, thank you, thank you, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart! xoxo

So, to celebrate this exciting news, I’m giving away this magazine, plus some of my other favorite goodies, to one lucky winner! Entering is easy, and all you have to do is head to my Facebook page for all the details! (Please click this link to enter.)

Here are the fun prizes you’ll win: some beautiful framed art, a set of flour-sack napkins, a rustic chalkboard, and a signed copy of the latest American Farmhouse Style magazine!

Thanks to all of you for your sweet encouragement and support as I continue on this adventurous blogging journey! If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at TheRusticBoxwood@gmail.com, or comment below, and I’ll get back with you as soon as I can! Have an awesome day!

Hey y’all, and thanks so much for stopping by! Today, I’m going to share with you all about a variety of garlands, and they’re all under $5!! But before we begin, I wanted to remind you to follow along with me on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, HomeTalk and Facebook, so you don’t miss another post! Also, if you’d like to see the live video I did on HomeTalk’s Facebook page regarding these exact garlands, please click this direct link. I hope you enjoy them! There’s an explanation on how to make each garland! 😉

Decoupage (DecoArt) (I used the outdoor decoupage so that I can hang mine outside.)

small sponge brush

pretty scrap paper

hole punch

jute twine

So, I used my awesome self-healing cutting mat from Hayneedle (thanks so much, Hayneedle!!), but of course, if you don’t have a cutting mat, you can get creative and do it all by hand. Using a pencil, I measured my small arrows to be 2″ wide and my large arrows 4″ wide on the balsa wood. This type of wood is SUPER easy to cut! Then, I painted each small arrow with the black paint. I used one large piece of scrap paper, and using the decoupage, I painted a thin layer on each piece of large arrow and immediately placed them on the paper, ensuring that they’re lined up evenly. Afterwards, I spread a thin layer on top of the paper to add a protective layer of sealant. I let all the arrows dry over night, and then cut the arrows that are covered with paper the next morning. One important thing to note is that the arrows want to curl ever so slightly when you paint the mod podge on, so to help flatten them, I placed each arrow under something heavy to help straighten the wood (once they were dry, of course). 😉 Once you’ve cut the paper around the arrow edges, punch holes through the wood and then slide some twine through the holes for hanging.

Garland #2: Floral Garland

Supplies

faux flowers from Dollar Tree

jute twine

floral wire

First, hot glue some twine around and around…and around…your floral wire to make it look like a brown stem and to add a sort of grip for the flowers to stick to. Pop flowers off the stems and then hot glue them to the twine/floral wire. Continue this process until you’ve reached the length you’d like to have.

The floral one in the pic below is at the top, and the fabric garland (which you’ll learn how to make next) is underneath.

First, tear about 1″ strips of your fabric. Then, fold each strip in half, and place under string. Bring ends of fabric up and over the string and through the fabric hole at the top. Pull tight and slide each strip closely together to add fullness to your garland.

Garland #4: Wrapping Paper Garland

Supplies

roll of wrapping paper

balsa wood

pretty trim

hot glue gun

scissors

DecoArt matte decoupage

First, measure and cut the wood to form your preferred size of each pennant. Next, paint mod podge onto each strip of wood. Immediately place the glued side of the wood on the inside of your paper. Then, brush a thin layer of mod podge over the outside of your paper, which will act as a sealant. Lastly, hot glue a coordinating trim to the top of your pennants to form a beautiful garland!

Garland #5: Tissue Paper Garland

Supplies

pretty tissue paper (I got a set of 8 sheets at the dollar tree.)

coordinating color of yarn

hot glue gun

Lay out your tissue paper in the order you’d like it to hang. If you don’t have time to iron the creases (like me!), use those folded edges to your advantage! Fold the tissue paper along those edges to form your pennants, and then lightly hot glue the inside of each one to the yarn. SO easy! And if you’d like to take an additional step, make some yarn tassels to go in between each pennant! (You’ll learn how to make them in my live video.)

I hope you’ve gained some inspiration for making your own garlands! These all were under $5 for me….Some were just pennies! Please don’t hesitate to reach out via email at TheRusticBoxwood@gmail.com if you have any questions, or you can comment below. Also, stop by and say hey on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, HomeTalk and Facebook. It always makes my day to hear from my sweet readers! Have a wonderful day!

(Giveaway now closed as of 9/30/16. The winner has been notified. A huge thanks to ALL of you who entered!)

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Hey friends! Boy, do I have some exciting news for y’all! I have partnered with Country Living to give one lucky winner a set of 2 Early-Bird passes to the Country Living Fair for the ENTIRE weekend here in Atlanta, GA October 21-23, 2016! You don’t want to miss this super-fun event!

I’ve been the past 2 years with my sweet mama, and we’ve made so many great memories and found some ah-mazing treasures! Both years, we’ve bought the “early-bird” pass, and we’ve never even once been disappointed. This special pass is so great, because Country Living allows a handful of guests to arrive an hour and a half early on Friday and Saturday to shop at all the booths before the crowd arrives. And a lot of booths even give a discount to all the early-birders! It’s wonderful getting to shop before everyone else!

I’m telling you, it’s really a special weekend. I tried to come up with my favorite part about this particular event, and it was truly so hard to narrow my faves down to just one! Both years that I’ve been, we’ve made lots of great memories and enjoyed special family time. Because kids 16 and under are free, I always bring my kiddos on Saturday and Sunday, because they love it just as much as I do! It’s not just for ladies. Even the men in your life would enjoy looking at the cool antiques, or checking out the decked-out rv’s that are on site, or even sampling all the fresh-made snacks!

And the food…whew, it’s sooo good! You get to taste a variety of samples before buying. But don’t worry, there’s not a food booth at this event that you won’t like. There are booths filled with delicious handmade pies, fresh bread and homemade sweet tea. Yuuuuummmy!

And let’s not forget the shows! This year’s guests are the sister-duo, the Junk Gypsies, who will appear on Saturday. They’re going to launch their new book, Junk Gypsies: Designing a Life at the Crossroads of Wonder and Wander. Another special guest will be Nancy Fuller, TV personality and author of Farmhouse Rules! Other fun guests include Cari Cucksey (star of HGTV’s Cash and Cari), Denise Sabia (blogger, The Painted Home), Joanna Palmisano (award-winning interior designer and regular DIY Network contributor), and Melissa Caughey (Tilly’s Nest, HGTV.com and CountryLiving.com writer and contributor). In addition to all these goodies, there will be an opportunity to audition for Flea Market Flip!

The yummy food, the vintage finds, the inspiring shows…everything is so much fun! It’s a one-of-a-kind event! And I’d love to give YOU the opportunity to win 2 early-bird tickets to the Country Living Fair in Atlanta!

Entering this contest is so easy! Check out my Instagram page for all the details. This contest runs from September 27-30, 2016. Can’t wait to share with you all the winner this Saturday!

Hey sweet friends! Recently, I shared our summer home tour on another friend’s blog…Shelstring…for her fabulous Summer Home Tour Series. Michelle is such a sweetheart, and she has a whole collection of various bloggers’ homes! You don’t want to miss this series! You can read all about our home here. 🙂 In our summer home tour, you’ll see all sorts of farmhouse decor…complete with white rockers, lots of flowers, and wonderful, vintage finds!

Here’s a sneak peek of our home…

So, I hope you’re wanting to hop on over to Shelstring now, if you haven’t already! Stop back by and say hey, and let me know what you thought about our summer home tour.

And when you’re finished checking out our home, please stop by and say “hey” on my Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest….Or comment below. I always love to hear from y’all! Have a wonderful day!